


Coffee Shops and Tattoos

by Slytherin_Princess_Nysa



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M, Falling In Love, First Meetings, Fluff, Gendrya - Freeform, Humor, Love, Love at First Sight, Magical Tattoos, POV Arya Stark, Romance, Sassy, Short & Sweet, Smitten Arya Stark, Smitten Gendry, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Tattoos
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-10
Updated: 2020-02-10
Packaged: 2021-02-28 02:48:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,191
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22596556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Slytherin_Princess_Nysa/pseuds/Slytherin_Princess_Nysa
Summary: Arya is trying to get her morning dose of coffee before her first class, just trying to keep her head down and wake herself up. She doesn't expect the sudden burn on her arm or the pretty blue eyes that look right through her.
Relationships: Arya Stark & Daenerys Targaryen, Arya Stark & Gendry Waters, Arya Stark/Gendry Waters, Jon Snow/Val, Meera Reed/Bran Stark, Robb Stark/Daenerys Targaryen, mentioned:
Comments: 48
Kudos: 207





	Coffee Shops and Tattoos

**Author's Note:**

  * For [the_bisexual_disaster](https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_bisexual_disaster/gifts).



**Monday Morning**

**Forest Love Cafe**

Arya was tired.

It was four in the morning and the sun hadn’t come up yet, only a few rays of golden sunshine lit Arya’s face as she walked down the street towards her lecture hall. There was a chill in the air and Arya pulled her coat closed tighter, trying to keep some of the warmth from her apartment. She shivered in her boots and tugged her messenger bag closer to her chest, trying to force the shiver out of her bones.

Dany had told her to put on a scarf and gloves but Arya had been sure it wasn’t  _ that _ cold and she was running late for the train. She thought about asking Dany to bring her some extra layers when she came down for her own courses, but Dany would never let her live it down. Arya loved her best friend but Dany had a nasty habit of being right- often and very loudly.

Arya stopped at the crosswalk, glancing in both directions to make sure she wouldn’t become bloody splatter on the street on the way to Advanced History of Westeros if she ran across before the light turned. She spotted the  _ Forest Love Cafe _ at the corner and the craving for caffeine and pastry grew in her stomach the longer she looked at it. Checking her wristwatch to make sure she would have enough time for a quick stop before running to her class, Arya huffed and jogged the crosswalk.

Happy enough with the time, Arya turned down the street towards the cafe. She quickly ran down the street and stepped into the cafe without delay. A welcome heat wrapped itself around her and Arya sighed, she shook her jacket open to take in the warmth.

Rolling up the sleeves of her sweater, Arya waited in the surprisingly short line to the front of the counter.

“Hello! What can I get for you today?” The girl at the register was overly cheery for someone working this early in the morning, but Arya tried to smile back as she folded her jacket over her arm. Although she was sure it came off more as a grimace.

“Can I get a white chocolate mocha with cinnamon on top?” She pulled out her wallet to pay. “Oh! And a chocolate muffin. For Arya, with a y.”

“That’ll be 9.52,” Arya handed over her card and the girl swiped it before handing it back. “That’s a beautiful mark, by the way. He must be one lucky guy. Or girl! No judgement.”

“I guess I’ll find out,” she laughed uneasily and moved to wait at the end of the counter.

Arya glanced down at her arm. Her tattoo was rather pretty, she could admit that, if not a touch femine. It was a delicately detailed golden crown of lacy leaves wrapped around her upper arm, a thin ribbon of yellow silk tying it at her elbow and flowing down to touch her wrist.

A spike of dread always hit her when she looked at it.

What if he was dead? Or lost his arm in an accident? What if they never found each other? What if nobody had the matching tattoo on their arm?

She was already twenty-four and still hadn’t met her soulmate. She was the last member in her family to be without a soulmate, her parents had met when they were teenagers and had been blissfully in love ever since. All throughout her childhood, it had given Arya the idea that one day, she would be that happy with her soulmate.

And here she was, a grown adult, all alone.

Two of her brothers - Jon and Bran - were engaged to their soulmates, Val and Meera would playfully argue about which of them got their wedding first at family dinners and Arya pretended like it didn’t bother her.

Up until three years ago, it had been her and Robb as the last of the unattached Starks. Then Robb had decided to be sweet and help his little sister move into her apartment with her new roommate. It had resulted in Arya moving her boxes from the truck to her room by herself, while Robb and Dany flirted on the couch.

They weren’t engaged yet but living with Dany meant the two of them couldn’t keep secrets from each other. Arya knew it was only a matter of time before there was a lovely heirloom ring on Dany’s finger.

Arya was happy for her brothers, really she was. But it felt unfair that the universe had decided she should be left on her own while everyone else was happy with their soulmates.

“Arya!” she snapped her head down just as her coffee and muffin were placed in front of her. She nodded her thanks and grabbed her things as she turned to leave.

She took a sip just as she exited the cafe. Shoving the muffin into her bag, Arya managed to roll down one sleeve and push her arm into her jacket before she hit a stone wall. Or what felt like one anyway. She landed on the ground with a hard thud.

“Holy fuck, that’s hot as hell.” Arya felt dizzy as she glanced up at the man in front of her. He was puffing at his shirt and trying to shake off the drops of coffee covering his chest. Standing up quickly, Arya followed him with her eyes. Suddenly he was reaching out towards her, helping her to her feet with a worried twitch in his brow. “Are you alright?”

“Yeah, just waiting for the bruise on my ass to show up.” she mumbled but judging by the light blush and slip of his eyes, he heard.

“I should have looked where I was going,” he said, bending down to pick up her bag and hand it to her gingerly. “Didn’t mean to ram you like this. Or in any way!” he rushed to add and Arya found herself smiling.

“Sorry!” a chuckle escaped her and she slapped a hand over her mouth to muffle the laughter. “I don’t know why I’m laughing, I swear!”

A twitch started in his lip, a lopsided grin slowly spreading over his face. Arya thought the smile suited him more than the straightface he’d had before. “I know you, don’t I?”

Arya turned her head to the side, studying him until a spark of recognition hit her. “Weren’t you Professor Seaworth’s graduate student?” He opened his mouth but Arya quickly held up her hand. “Wait, don’t tell me! Something Waters, right? I’m sorry, I’m bad with names.”

Which wasn’t true, she was wonderful with remembering names. But she had only seen him when she was walking to and from her own class across the hall from his. Nothing too personal. She’d thought he was handsome in a roguish and brilliantly blue kind of way. She knew they had some friends in common too, Lommy and Hot Pie (not that those were their real names but she thought it was rude to ask).

He held out his hand and Arya tentatively placed her hand in his. “Gendry.”

“Arya.” a spark travelled up her arm and her eyes dropped down to her tattoo. “I had English Lit with Professor Martell.”

“I remember that,” his eyes widened slightly and he dropped her hand, running his fingers through his hair nervously. Arya took the opportunity to put on the rest of her jacket on and tug her bag up her shoulder. “I mean you’re very hard to forget.”

Arya blinked slowly, a happy little bubble building in her stomach. “Thank you?”

“Definitely a compliment.” he hurried to reassure her and Arya thought his awkward stumble through their conversation was endearing and sweet.

“I’m sorry I spilled my coffee all over you,” and she genuinely was.

“Don’t worry about it, I didn’t like this jumper anyway.” Arya looked down at the large, brown stain in the centre of his chest. It looked absolutely awful against the lovely blue of his sweater. “It was a gift from my uncle. Well his boyfriend picked it out. This is actually the first time I’ve worn it. I’m not much into bright or - what are they called? Pastel? Bright or pastel colours aren’t really my thing. I like darker clothes because I can spill and it doesn’t show. Not that I spill on myself a lot! I just meant-”

Arya found that the more he rambled, the more adorable he looked. There was a light dusting of blush on his cheekbones and he glanced around nervously. He was still talking, animatedly waving his arms when Arya noticed the flash of yellow on his wrist.

“What’s that?”

Gendry stopped and looked down at his arm. For someone who had so much to say minutes ago, he was suddenly at a loss for words and Arya stepped further into his personal space, reaching out to his hand.

_ He smells nice _ .

It was considered rude to ask to see other people’s soulmate marks. Like asking strangers to strip in the middle of the street. Arya tried to ignore the angry voice in the back of her head telling her how inappropriate this was. A voice that sounded disturbingly like her mother.

Rolling up his sleeve slowly, Arya heard his sharp breath as her finger traced the ribbon on his inner arm. It was the shame pale shade as hers. Her fingers shook and Gendry’s hand covered hers before she could reveal more of his mark.

“Can we go somewhere more private?” he blanched. “Not to do anything! I just want to talk to you in private.”

“Okay,” Arya nodded. “Where do you want to go?”

“My flat is around the corner?” Gendry’s fingers tightened around hers and Arya let him pull her around the corner.

If he held her hand and looked at her from the corner of his eye the two blocks to his apartment, Arya chose not to comment. It felt nice. Holding his hand, her shoulder brushing his bicep, and her soulmate tattoo seemed to heat up the longer she stood next to him.

They stopped in front of an old brimstone complex. He dug his keys out of his pocket and held the door open for her. Arya passed under his arm and slipped into the living room while he clicked the lock and dropped his bag by the door.

Arya looked around the room. It was all soft browns and deep greens. It radiated comfort and warmth and Arya ran her fingers over the bookshelf. He had some classics and some science fiction but the majority of books were medieval and history. A big TV was mounted on the wall and an unsteady tower of video games were balanced underneath.

There was an empty cup on the corner of the table next to a closed book and Arya brushed aside the cup to read the title,  _ Weaponry in the Age of Heroes _ . Arya loved the decorative sword Jon had gotten her for her ninth birthday and it seemed like Gendry would definitely appreciate the craftsmanship.

“Make yourself comfortable,” he said from the door.

“It’s homey.” she threw her coat over one of the chairs and crossed her arms, hand pressed to her tattoo self consciously. “Let’s see it.”

What if she was wrong? It wasn’t that uncommon to have a similar element in soulmate tattoos. What if he just had a stupid ribbon on his wrist?

“You’re really straight forward,” he said, stepping into the living room.

Chewing on her lip, Arya leaned on the back of the chair before thinking better of it and sat on the couch. “Why waste time when I feel like my anxiety can destroy a small country? It’s not everyday you think you might have found your soulmate. No pressure or anything.” an uncomfortable chuckle following.

“Arya. There’s no might.” he rubbed at the nape of his neck and her eyebrows rose, he sat next to her. “I know I’m your soulmate. I saw your mark when you ran into me.”

He pulled up his sleeve and Arya’s breath caught in her throat. There it was. The golden crown of leaves she saw every day on her own arm her entire life was staring back at her. Her fingers brushed the gold and distantly, she wondered when her hand had left her side. She traced the lacy pattern of the leaves, following the dip of his muscle down his arm until she reached the tail of the ribbon at his forearm.

She yanked her sleeve up, looking between their arms with awe. “It’s the same.”

“Are you happy?” He looked down to where her hand was resting against his his. “I know we don’t know each other and it might be too late to tell you I’m not a great catch.”

“Why do you think that?” She scooted closer.

“A lot of parent issues.” He simplified but Arya knew there was more there. She wanted to be supportive, not just because he was her soulmate but because she wanted to take care of him and get to know him better.

“Tell me? If you don’t think it’s too personal, of course.”

Soulmates had a strong bond from the beginning - obviously or they wouldn’t be soulmates in the first place - but trust wasn’t the same thing. It could take soulmates years to trust each other with anything. Let alone their personal baggage.

Gendry studied her and leaned back on the couch, bringing her with him. “My mother and I grew up in this tiny flat in King’s Landing. She was a hairdresser and I got my first job at fifteen so I could help her pay the bills. My dad didn’t show up until after she died. He feels responsible because he was never there for us so he bought me this place and pays for school and gives me lavish gifts that I don’t want.”

“He sounds like a shit dad.” Gendry laughed, nodding his head and Arya felt her heart skip a beat at his smile.

Gendry propped his head up and Arya found herself staring at his tattoo when she caught sight of the golden leaves. “What about you? Where did you grow up?”

“Born and raised in Winterfell.” Arya pulled out her phone and opened up the gallery, turning the screen to show him a picture of her family. It was last Christmas and Arya pointed out each member and puppy. “My parents are sickeningly in love, they’ve been married forty years. These are the most important Starks- Nym, Ghost, Greywind, Shaggydog and Summer. I have four brothers, Bran and Rickon are younger and Robb and Jon are older. And these are their soulmates. Dany, Val, Meera and Shireen.”

If Gendry noticed the longing in her voice, he didn’t comment. She had a soulmate now, she had Gendry but it was still so new and a part of her still felt like she was just talking with a new friend. She felt connected to him but it felt fragile. Like their bond was only just now growing with each word they exchanged.

“Four brothers and five dogs? Are you saying that to try and scare me?” he asked. “Because it’s definitely working.”

“I’ll protect you.”

“Thank you, milady.”

She felt a blush colour on her cheeks and she shoved his shoulder. “Don’t call me that!”

“As you wish,” Arya tucked her legs under her and let his voice wash over her. He had a very pleasant and soothing voice, a quality she never thought she would enjoy as much as she did. “How did you end up in Storm’s End?”

“I love history and culture. Stagdale University has the best anthropology programme in Westeros and I didn’t want to be too far away from my family. I’m getting my Masters next.”

“Any of them close by?”

“Interesting story,” she smiled fondly at the memory. “I met Dany when I came to tour SU and we hit it off right away, we messaged back and forth and ended up getting an apartment together. She’s my best friend and when my brother came to help move us in, Robb was smitten. Turned out Dany is his soulmate. Robb moved here less than a year after they met.”

He laughed and they fell deeper into conversation. Arya found out he was a business major but his passion was in history and ancient weapons, something she found absurdly cool. Especially when he showed her some of his sketches. Gendry agreed to draw her anything she wanted if she promised to tell him stories about cultures she knew while he sketched.

She told him about her senior trip to Braavos with Mycah, her childhood friend. And when she told him about the drunken tattoo she had gotten, Gendry laughed so hard tea came out of his nose and he could barely breathe when he told him about her mother’s reaction.

Gendry had just asked what she wanted to do for dinner when Arya realized just how long they had spent talking on his couch. She glanced outside the window as Gendry disappeared into the kitchen, it was already dark and Arya couldn’t believe time had gone by so quickly.

Just as Arya reached into her bag to dig her phone out and check for any messages, Gendry called from the kitchen. “Arya!”

“Yeah?”

“Onions or no?”

“Not a big fan of them but if you want them, I’ll be fine.” Seeing all the missed calls from Dany, Arya stood up from the couch. “Hey, I have to make a call. I’ll be right back.”

She threw her jacket on before stepping outside, closing the door behind her. It was chilly out and Arya already missed the warmth from inside. “Hey, Dany.”

“Arya!” she could hear Robb’s voice in the background and Dany turned to shush him. “Where are you? We’ve been worried sick! You didn’t call me for lunch and your brothers haven’t been able to reach you all day either. Are you okay?”

“I’m-” she glanced back at the door and pictured Gendry sitting on the couch next to her. “Absolutely fantastic. I’m great.”

There was a scuffle at the other end of the phone and suddenly Robb’s voice came through the speaker instead of Dany’s. “Why haven’t you called? If you weren’t an adult, I would tell mum and ground you. You know what? No, I’m still your big brother and I’m grounding you. You’re grounded.”

“I’m sorry, I’ve been lost in my head all day.”

“Robb, just put it- yes, on speaker, you dork.” Dany’s voice floated in and out before, Arya assumed, she was put on speaker. “What’s happened? You sound...weird.”

Normally, Arya would joke about how married they already sounded but today she had this lovely happiness bubbling inside her and Arya couldn’t help the way she was itching to go inside and talk to her soulmate.

“I found him. I found my soulmate!” Dany squealed and Arya drew the phone away as the scream got too loud. “His name is Gendry…”


End file.
